WR Albert Wilson
(On how he feels after missing the last two games.) – “Pretty good. I’m just working my way back into things. I feel pretty good.”
(Head Coach Brian Flores said there is a possibility that you can play on Sunday. Do you feel you are ready to go on Sunday?) – “Yeah, I feel really good. We’re just doing everything possible just to protect ourselves for the rest of the season and just making sure I’ll be able to go out there strong week after week. Whatever is best for me is pretty much going to happen on Sunday. But yeah, I feel good. I feel like I’m ready.”
(The whole process of dealing with the hip for several months and now a calf injury on top of it, how mentally trying and draining has it been to deal with all of that?) – “Not at all. I’m just super ready. I’m just ready to get back out there, ready to help this team out. I’m just ready to get back out there. There’s not any downfall mentally of me not behind out there. I’m just excited and I just can’t wait for it to happen.”
(Has any of this been precautionary? Could you played last week?) – “No. I don’t think I could have been out there 100 percent last week so I think that was a great decision. But yeah, I feel pretty good this week. I’ve been doing everything they ask me to do so we’ll see.”
(What was it like those first three games, you watching them on TV?) – “Just kind of heartbreaking, just not being able to help and being sidelined really sucks. But that’s why we get 16 weeks, I guess. We’re just moving on week after week and just try to try our best to figure it out.”
(Do you say anything to the other receivers? Seeing it from the TV, do you see different things or angles? Maybe encouraging them? What’s it like…) – “Definitely. I feel like we’re doing some good things. We just have to capitalize on other things and get better in the things we’re lacking in. I think the guys are doing a great job of just coming in every day and just trying to get better. This week we have another chance to prove that we got better, so that’s good.”
(Last week, a lot of balls were going downfield from QB Josh Rosen. Did you get excited now that you’re coming back and you see how that offense is with him, to maybe get a chance to be a little bit explosive there?) – “Yeah. I don’t really catch a lot of downfield balls. (laughter) It looks great though. I think he did a great job of just coming in and being prepared. I think we can help him out on our side and the receiver’s side a little more. When we get things figured out in our room and with him getting more comfortable back there, I think things will be exciting for the offense.”
(When was the last time you felt like yourself physically?) – “The Friday before the Patriots game. I was really good, ready to go, then the calf kind of happened. It kind of set me back a couple of weeks. Right now, besides back then, right now I feel really good. I feel like I’m moving smooth, moving fast, and just ready to get out there and just show the world.”
(You mean the Ravens week?) – “Ravens. My mistake, the Ravens week, yeah. So the Ravens week, that Friday the calf happened. But other than that, right now I feel really good. I got out there and moved yesterday and felt really, really good. They had to kind of hold me back from doing things. I feel good, just waiting for them to call my number so I can get in there.”
(What went into your decision to not have the hip surgery, and to let this heal naturally?) – “I didn’t need it. If we didn’t need to go in there and fix anything, and if it didn’t heal on it’s own surgery was always an option. But I think we made a good decision of not having it. It doesn’t bother me at all to this day. I think we did a good job of calling no surgery and just letting it heal naturally, and taking it’s time on its own.”
(This is all calf, not hip?) – “No, the hip feels great. The calf kind of set me back a couple of weeks, but when it’s my time, it’s going to be good, it’s definitely going to be good.”
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Thursday, September 26, 2019
RB Kenyan Drake
(Is it encouraging despite the outcome of the last two games that at halftime, you guys were competitive? Does that encourage you for this offense?) – “This is a very results-driven league. The results are not computing with whatever encouragement that we may be trying to seek. We need to do a lot more executing before we can worry about encouraging because encouragement is not going to help this team win games. We have to go out there and play football – play meaningful football – and right now we’re focused on the Chargers to do that. We’re ready for this weekend.”
(Where is the confidence level of the team? Has it taken a little bit of a hit through three games?) – “We’re all here to do our jobs – me especially. That’s what we get paid to show up and do no matter what the results are. And every new week is a new opportunity to go out there, prove yourself, prove your worth, prove your ability to go out there and play this game to a high level. If you lack any type of confidence, then you shouldn’t be here.”
(What are some of the things that have led to your success in the last game?) – “Just taking what is there. The coaches put me in a great position to make plays. Everybody else around me was doing their job and me doing my job. If we continue to bring everything together – the culmination of everybody doing their job should equal to us having a lot more success from a numbers standpoint, and then that will equate to putting more points on the board and ultimately getting wins.”
(What does it mean to have S Reshad Jones and WR Albert Wilson back?) – “Obviously those are two playmakers on both sides of the ball, so having Reshad back will definitely bolster the defense. Having Albert ack will obviously do the same on offense. We’re encouraged by their continued growth and their rehab and hope to see them soon.”
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Thursday, September 26, 2019
C/G Evan Boehm
(You have been called ‘nasty’ and ‘salty.’ Do you like those phrases?) – “I do like those phrases. Under this offense and under this coach – especially ‘Guge’ (Offensive Line Coach Dave DeGuglielmo) – he likes those nasty players that they get after it. I think one person that really helped me out last year with becoming kind of this player or taking steps into becoming that type of player is Matt Slauson. When I was up in Indy with ‘Guge’ last year, Matt was on IR but he was kind of like a second coach. He was in my ear telling me like, ‘hey, watch me do this real quick on film.’ He goes, ‘now, how could you do that in that situation?’ or ‘what could you do better here?’ He just sat me down and helped me and coached me to become a better football player and understanding the schemes but also understanding the times where you can go out there and just let loose.”
(What do you think it is about you that probably made Offensive Line Coach Dave DeGuglielmo say to the team, “hey, we need to trade for this guy?”) – “I got thrown in last year in Indy in Week 6 when (Ryan) Kelly – really Week 8 – when Kelly went down. It was my second week of being there, but Kelly was down that whole first week I was there, and the second day I got there, I was running with the ones. I had to learn everything fast on the run. I think my football intelligence. I think learning the offenses quick, picking up the offenses and just understanding what he wants out of certain players and understanding what he wants out of certain positions because every position is going to be different. Center is totally different than right guard, and right guard and left guard – they’re very similar, but at some points they are different. Tackles are out on their island doing their own thing. I think understanding how to play that guard and center spot really helps me out.”
(How does this line get better? I know you guys have a lot of adversity with the injuries, a lot of people and moving pieces…) – “It’s buying in. It’s buying in and I think it starts with the leadership Danny (Daniel Kilgore) gives, and he hasn’t wavered once. His attitude has always been the same since Day 1 since I’ve been here about getting in there, working your tail off, going and getting your job done and making sure your job gets done right. Like I said, when I got interviewed first when I first got here, I’m here to help this team out. I’m here to help this team win in any way, shape or form. I think if everybody goes back and looks over the last three weeks, we’ve gotten better as an offensive line. We’re buying into ‘Guge’s’ techniques and his terminology and what he wants and what he needs from all of us to become that offensive line. We have to protect Josh (Rosen). We have to protect Ryan (Fitzpatrick) if he’s out there. We have to open up the holes for ‘K.D.’ (Kenyan Drake) and ‘K.B.’ (Kalen Ballage) when they’re in there, and we’ve got to understand that it’s five guys doing one job. That’s pretty much the hardest thing on the field because you’ve got wide receivers running their own routes and yeah, they play off of each other, but you have five dudes playing under one. It’s like a chain: if one is weak, it’s all broke. We’ve all got to buy in and understand what he wants and what he needs to get the ball in the playmaker’s hands fast.”
(So you mentioned guard and center, and I’m presuming you’re training at guard at the moment?) – “Guard and center. I’m doing both.”
(What’s the difference?) – “Just the footwork. One, you’ve got the ball in your hand. You start with the ball. You’re in front of everybody else. Especially in pass pro(tection), trying to get back on the same level with everybody else when you have a head or you have a shade to your left or right and you’re trying to get over there square so you’re all on the same level squared up, that’s tough. It’s a tough job; or when you go into reach on an outside zone or do something on an inside zone, you’re in front of everybody else. You get contacted faster than everybody else, so you have to be better with your footwork. At guard, you’re in a box between the tackle and the center, but you still have to understand the lanes and the angles and the stuff that we have to do to get done in order to help the center out and the tackle out at the same time.”
(How did you feel it went for you when you went into the game?) – “I had fun. It’s always fun getting out there and playing ball. This is a job, but ultimately it’s a game. You love going out there and having fun. I think we played fairly decent as an offensive line for the most part. There are still a lot of corrections that we have to make. There are still a lot of things that we left out there on the table that we saw Monday when we came in. ‘Guge’ is doing a great job and Danny (Kilgore) and even Jesse (Davis), they’re all doing a great job with keeping the young guys up and keeping the young guys going and making sure that they’re still in it. It’s Week 4. We’ve got a lot of games ahead of us. If we keep progressing to become a better offensive line, things could turn around.”
(Did you see the video of the LSU guard who just on a pass block demolished a dude and then knocked him down again?) – “Yeah, that’s unbelievable. That was unbelievable. I think it was a different dude.”
(What did you think when you saw that?) – “That’s an animal. That’s an animal right there. That’s always fun to get. That’s what you look for on offensive line. If you’re an open guy on a pass pro(tection), that’s what you look for and stuff like that. It was cool seeing that. You’ve always got to give the big men some love every once in a while when stuff goes wrong. When ‘stuff’ goes wrong, the finger gets pointed real quick to the five guys up front. When it goes right, we’re the undercover guys. That’s what we signed up for. That’s what we love about the job.”
(I’ve never met you but you seem like such a nice guy. How do you turn into this different person on the field?) – “That’s what my wife asks. (laughter) That’s just my personality. I grew up a coach’s kid. I’ve grown up around football, and I know how to flip a switch, I feel like. I can be in the locker room having fun and joking around. I could be on the sideline talking and having fun, but then you have to understand there’s a time and place and when you step over the white line, the time is now and (you have to be) ready to turn it on.”
(Where does your dad coach?) – “In Kansas City. Lee’s Summit West High School. He’s retired now, but I grew up around it. I just love the game.”
(Were you a ball boy your whole life?) – “I was, yeah. Oh, yeah.”
(How many years did he coach?) – “All in all, I think he coached 32 years, but he was a head coach for 16. He took the high school that he was the head coach at – he was the defensive coordinator for a while, and then at a brand new high school, he was the head coach for the first 16 years. There are three high schools in Lee’s Summit, and he brought the first three state championships to Lee’s Summit.”
(Did you know DE Charles Harris?) – “Funny story because Coach (Andy) Hill was our recruiting coach for Missouri and Coach Hill was talking to my dad one day when he came in for a recruiting trip, and he was like, ‘hey, is there anybody that you’ve seen in the metro that we could take a look at that’s a sleeper that maybe we can take away from somebody else?’ I think Charles was a basketball player mainly in high school so a very raw talent in football. My dad was like, ‘Yo, go check this guy out because we’ve seen him on some film,’ and Coach Hill fell in love with him. We were at Missouri together. I didn’t know Charles in high school. I knew him more when we got to Missouri, but Kansas City kids tend to stick together. It’s cool to be Kansas City kids from Mizzou, and now we’re here together, so it’s awesome.”
(Did the playing time Sunday leave you jumping for you?) – “Oh, yeah. My mouth is watering. I want some more. (laughter)”
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Thursday, September 26, 2019
Head Coach Brian Flores
(I know obviously you want all your players to play well, but there’s a handful of veterans on the team who aren’t playing at the level they have in the past. I know it’s a small sample size. Do you go to them and challenge them saying, “I need more?” What’s your approach with that group?) – “I challenge everybody. Everyone in the building – players, coaches, security, weight staff – everyone gets challenged. It’s a total team effort. Individually, we all have to do a better job. Even the guys who are playing well or playing well in spurts – everyone gets challenged. We want everyone to play at a – we have a high standard. I have a high standard. We’re not playing up to that standard right now, and we need to try to work towards that. It starts in practice. It starts in meetings. It’s never just one player in a team game like this. From play to play it could be one or two guys; but collectively, it’s everyone. We all have to try to meet that standard and play to our potential.”
(Who challenges you besides Chairman of the Board/Managing General Partner Stephen Ross and General Manager Chris Grier?) – “Our coaching staff. I like communication. I like to be challenged. Our coaching staff – we sit in meetings. We go back and forth about things we feel like are best for individual players, the team, etc. At the end of the day, I have final say; but I’m always going to do what I feel is best for the team. That communication sparks a different line of thinking at times. I think that’s needed in really any field and any environment. It’s something that I relish. I want communication from players, from coaches, from personnel. Again, I’ve never sat here and said I have all the answers. At the end of the day, somebody’s got to make a final decision. That falls on me; but in order to make that decision, you need to have all the pertinent information. I’m trying to gather that at all times in a myriad of areas whether it be offense, defense, special teams, personnel. There are a hundred different areas where I’m trying to gather information to make the right decision for this organization.”
(What do you think of Chargers DE Joey Bosa?) – “(laughter) I think he’s one of the top young players in this league. His combination of size, speed, athleticism and just strictly pass rush. His pass rush technique is at the top of the league. He’s got an array of rushes. He’s got power. He’s got speed. He’s got – we can get into the technical terms – doubles – we can get into all the technical terms but he’s got it all. The one thing he has is a very, very high motor. Even when he doesn’t win on the snap, he can win with his second effort and third effort. That’s what you’re looking for, so that’ll be a major test for us. Just from a pure effort standpoint, we’ve got to finish every snap on that particular player. It’s not just him. (Melvin) Ingram has an array of moves and the type of tenacity – it’s coming from both sides. Really, that’s the case throughout the entire defense. They do a good job. Obviously those two are the two guys who you definitely have to have eyes on. From (Brandon) Mebane to – they’ve got the young guy (Jerry) Tillery in there who’s a good young player as well. Obviously Thomas Davis, Casey Hayward – they’ve got a good team. It’s not just one guy, it’s not just two guys; they’ve got 11 and some guys who come in the game as (backups). I think of (Desmond) King – their nickel – who’s a really good player as well. So it’s a good team.”
(From a player evaluation standpoint, where do you rank high motor and effort as traits when you’re looking for players?) – “I think it’s something that is one of those things to me, that’s just a standard operating procedure. That’s how you should play the game. It’s a privilege to play this game. Our guys play with good effort and you see it. It’s just, ‘hey, that’s the way it’s supposed to be played.’ At times, it’s not always the case. Guys get tired, they’re not conditioned, etc. But effort, motor, tenacity, willingness to put in the work to have the conditioning to play at that level over the course of an entire game – I think that speaks volumes for a player. I know we’re talking about (Joey) Bosa, but a guy who has all the talent, has all the height, weight, speed – you can tell there’s no complacency to that young man. That’s why he plays the way he plays. They’ve got a lot of players like that. To me, that’s how you’re supposed to play this game. I think we’ve got a group of guys who play that way as well.”
(I know there are some reports out there that Chargers RB Melvin Gordon is going to report. He may not play but in the event that he does play, is that something that you are prepared for?) – “Yeah, we’re prepared for everyone. The second that got reported, I went to my Melvin Gordon tape and took a look. I have some familiarity with him. This is one of the best backs in the league running the football. He runs hard, breaks tackles, catches it out of the backfield. He’s a good player. But they’ve got good backs. We talked about (Austin) Ekeler yesterday and (Justin Jackson). They’ve got an array of backs. Just add one more to the preparation and away we go.”
(What did you see from C/G Evan Boehm after he came into the game?) – “I thought he played hard. I thought from an assignment standpoint, he knew where to be and what to do. His communication was good. Again, it’s a tough environment (with) crowd noise (and) good players. It wasn’t all perfect, but he’s a guy who has gotten better since he’s gotten here every week and getting more comfortable. Hopefully that continues.”
(With QB Josh Rosen, DT Robert Nkemdiche and DE Taco Charlton, you guys have acquired some first-round players. Do players who are first-round players, do you think that when they don’t pan out immediately, that they have adequate time to develop in this NFL climate where expectations are so high for those players?) – “First round, second round, undrafted, I think you can get players really anywhere from a draft selection or undrafted. Really what matters is when you get into a building and you learn the offense or the defense or the kicking game, you apply yourself in the meeting room and through walkthroughs and in practice, and you just try to be the best player you can be. To me, the round doesn’t – I’m not really locked in on the rounds. My focus is on the individual player. If you get caught up in rounds and things of that nature then that kind of takes some of the focus off of the individual and in this case, his ability to reach his potential for his skillset. That’s kind of my thinking on that. I throw the rounds out and I just focus on the player.”
(How do you kind of help a player deal with those expectations?) – “It’s the same message I give to the players every day: let’s focus on today. Let’s not worry about what round you’re in. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. What matters is the work you put in on a day-to-day basis and whether or not you are doing the things necessarily to become the best player you can be. Worrying about what round you’re in, I don’t know if that necessarily helps you. Conversely, worrying about not being drafted or getting drafted late or whatever the circumstances are that you end up on a team, worrying about that doesn’t help you on the field. Maybe it gives you a little bit of motivation; but to me, if you aren’t motivated to play in this league – maybe that gives you a little extra but most guys are motivated to play and compete and get better. I see that on this team. I see that from (Robert) Nkemdiche, from Taco (Charlton), from really everyone. It doesn’t matter (if they were selected in the) first round, second round, undrafted, Canadian – the CFL – it doesn’t matter. That’s what I’m looking for. I think those are the kinds of guys we have on this team and I think those are the guys who develop.”
(Do you like to watch Thursday Night Football, like the whole game? Parts of it? Can you watch football for enjoyment or the whole time will you be like scouting the Eagles because you know you have them?) – “The game is on in the background. A lot of times, I’m watching situations so the end of the half and how they’re using their timeouts and would I have challenged that. That’s kind of how I watch the game. I wouldn’t say it’s – I feel like I’m still working in a lot of ways. Thursday is a big night for us. It’s red zone and 2-minute and kind of finishing up – like every other team – the installs and preparation for the next opponent. So no, I’m not sitting there watching the entire game with popcorn. (laughter) I’m not doing that. But it’s on in the background. I love watching football. I just watch it a little bit differently than I have in the past.”
(What about Saturdays?) – “College football?
(Oh yeah.) – “I have yet to watch one.”
(You haven’t watched any college football?) – “I watched the end of the Georgia game. It was after meetings. Georgia vs. Notre Dame – it was actually the last play. It was a Hail Mary at the end. That’s all I’ve got. (laughter)”
(No Boston College?) – “No. Unfortunately I haven’t watched much of that. We’ve got some other things going on here. (laughter) I think the guys at BC will forgive me for not watching every one.”
